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Warminger said it was good news that New Zealand institutional investors had been looked after as that had not happened with the previous asset sell-downs.

He believed many retail investors would have been turned off by the fact it was an airline.

"I think airlines are polarising. You either like them or stay away."

English said three-quarters of the way through the Government's partial asset sales programme, the Government had "met our commitments to New Zealanders being at the front of the queue in achieving a minimum 85 per cent New Zealand ownership of the companies".

The Government will retain 53 per cent of Air New Zealand with a total of 88 per cent of the company owned by New Zealanders at the point of sale.

A trading halt in the company is due to lift this morning. Air New Zealand's sale puts the Government's total proceeds from its asset sale programme at $3.93 billion with only Genesis Energy left to partially privatise.

John Key said the 20 per cent of Air NZ shares the Government sold had done well, which showed how much demand there was from New Zealand investors and institutions.

He expected the asset sales programme to get near the lower $5 billion figure of the $5-7 billion estimate the Government had originally place on it, even without Solid Energy.

"My guess is by the time we get through Genesis, we'll be pretty close to that $5 billion." He said if Solid Energy was in a fit state to be sold and worth anything near the $2 - 3 billion it was originally valued it, the sales programme would have reached more than $6 billion.